Building a Strong Password Techniques for Creating Unbreakable Passwords

Creating an Unbreakable Password

Have you ever created a long and complicated password only to forget it after a few days? Creating an unbreakable password does not have to be so complicated. In this article, Four Methods to Create a Secure Password Youll Actually Remember, author Kevan Lee breaks down different methods and memory tricks that you can use to create a complicated password that you will not forget.

Four Methods to Create a Secure Password Youll Actually Remember

How do you balance the necessity of highly secure passwords with the utility of easily recallingthem all?

Its a question I mull each and every time a security breach happens. When the Heartbleed vulnerability was discovered last spring, the mandate was for everyone to change all their passwords right away. Its still on my to-do list. I cringe at the thought of getting hacked, and I also cringe at the thought of taking the time and mental energy to do a complete overhaul of my favorite passwords.

Does this sound like you?

If you happen to have a system in place to manage your unique, random, unbreakable passwords, then my hats off to you.According to some estimates, you are among a well-protected 8 percent of users who do not reuse passwords.

The rest of us are still searching for a solution. We know that creating a safe password is paramount, but how does one actually go about creating and recalling all those essential, random passwords we need? It took writing this post to get me on the straight-and-narrow with my passwords. Heres what I learned about how to create a secure password you can remember.

Theanatomy of an unbreakable password

The longer the password, the harder it is to crack.Consider a 12-character password or longer.

Things to avoid: Names, places, dictionary words.

Mix it up.Use variations on capitalization, spelling, numbers, and punctuation.

These three rules make it exponentially harder forhackersto crack your password. The strategies employed by password crackers have advanced to an incredibly efficient level, so its imperative to be unusual with the passwords you create. Heresan example from security expert Bruce Schneierabout just how far password crackers have come:

Crackers use different dictionaries: English words, names, foreign words, phonetic patterns and so on for roots; two digits, dates, single symbols and so on for appendages. They run the dictionaries with various capitalizations and common substitutions: $ for s, @ for a, 1 for l and so on. This guessing strategy quickly breaks about two-thirds of all passwords.

Recent password breaches at sites like Adobehave shown how insecure many of our passwords are. Here is a list of the most common passwords that turned up in the Adobe breach. It probably goes without saying: Avoid using these passwords.

123456123456789passwordadmin12345678qwerty1234567111111photoshop1231231234567890000000abc1231234adobe1macromediaazertyiloveyouaaaaaa654321

If youre curious whetheryour chosen password is secure or not, you can run it through an online password checker like the one atOnlineDomainTools. To highlight the importance of a lengthy, random, unique password, the online checker has specific fields to show your passwords variation in characters, its appearance in dictionaries, and the time it would take for a brute force attack to crack it. Heres an example with a password like bre7E$ret98:!aZ.

4 methods for choosing an unbreakable password

The only problem with coming up with a random, unbreakable password is that random passwords are hard to remember. If youre solely typing in characters with no rhyme or reasona truly random fashionthen youll likely have as hard a time remembering it as someone will cracking it.

So it makes sense to go with a seemingly random password, one that is near impossible for cracking software to recognize but that has meaning or familiarity for you. Here are four methods to try.

Bruce Schneiers method

Security expert Bruce Schneier put forth a password method back in 2008 thathe still recommends today. It works like this:Take a sentence and turn it into a password.

The sentence can be anything personal and memorable for you. Take the words from the sentence, then abbreviate and combine them in unique ways to form a password.Here are four sample sentences that I put together.

WOO!TPwontSB = Woohoo! The Packers won the Super Bowl!

PPupmoarT@O@tgs = Please pick up more Toasty Os at the grocery store.

1tubuupshhhimj = I tuck button-up shirts into my jeans.

W?ow?imp::ohth3r = Where oh where is my pear? Oh, there.

The Electrum Method

Managing a Bitcoin wallet requires a high level of security and a huge reliance on safe passwords. Enter Electrum.The Electrum wallet offers a 12-word seedthat lets you access all your Bitcoin addresses. The seed serves as a master password for your Bitcoins.

This type of password is also called a pass phrase, and it represents a somewhat new way of thinking about security. Instead of a difficult-to-remember string of characters, you can make a lengthy phrase instead. (Note:Bruce Schneier warnsthat password crackers now put together common dictionary words in their guesses, so if you try the pass phrase method, keep it as long as possible.)

How can you create a 12-word seed of your own? Its as simple as it sounds.Come up with 12 random words.

You can start with a phrase such as Even in winter, the dogs party with brooms and neighbor Kit Kats. Just make sure it isnot a simple phrase or a phrase taken from existing literature. You can grab 12 random words, too: Pantry duck cotton ballcap tissue airplane snore oar Christmas puddle log charisma.

When placed into a password checker, the 12-word pass phrase above shows that it will take238,378,158,171,207 quadragintillion years for a brute force attack to crack.

The PAO Method

Memorization techniques and mnemonic devices might help you remember an unbreakable password. At least, thatsthe theory put forth by Carnegie Mellon University computer scientistswho suggest using the Person-Action-Object (PAO) method to create and store your unbreakable passwords.

PAO gained popularity in Joshua Foers bestselling bookMoonwalking with Einstein.The methodgoes like this:

Select an image of an interesting place (Mount Rushmore). Select a photo of a familiar or famous person (Beyonce). Imagine some random action along with a random object (Beyonce driving a Jello mold at Mount Rushmore).

The PAO method of memorization has cognitive advantages; our brains rememberbetter with visual, shared cues and with outlandish, unusual scenarios. Once you create and memorize several PAO stories, you can use the stories to generate passwords.

For example, you can take the first three letters from driving and Jello to create driJel. Do the same for three other stories, combine your made-up words together, and youll have an 18-character password thatll appear completely random to others yet familiar to you.

Phonetic Muscle Memory

Ive developed a bit of a fondness for a personal password system of mine that Ive used to create some strange, unusual, random passwords over time. My method relies on a couple of helpful remembering devices: Phonetics and muscle memory. Heres how it works:

Go to arandom password generator site.

Create 20 new passwords that are at least 10 characters in lengthandinclude numbers and capital letters (and punctuation if youre feeling brave).

Scan the passwords, looking for phonetic structurebasically try to find passwords that you can sound out in your head. Ex.,

drEnaba5Et (doctor enaba 5 E.T.)

BragUtheV5 (brag you the V5)

Type out the phonetic passwords in a text file, taking note of how easy they are to type and how quickly you can type them. The easy-to-type passwords tend to get stuck in my muscle memory quicker.

Keep the phonetic, muscle-memory passwords. Toss the rest. Print out your text file with password keepers.

One at a time, change your passwords on your most-commonly-used websites. Itll take a time or two of typing in these new passwords before you have the new themfully memorized, but typing it in enough should cement it in your brain. I still remember passwords from years ago based on this method.

The next most important step for a secure password

After creating your super-secure password, there is still one huge, all-important step remaining:Never reuse the same password.

Oof.I imagine a lot of folks get hung up on this part. Creating and remembering a unique password is challenging on its own, much less doing it multiple times. I seem to sign up at a new website or service once per day. Thats 30 new passwords a month, and Im afraid my brain cannot hold all that in.

How do you manage to create unique passwords, never reuse a single one, and still log in with speed and efficiency (and without hitting the forgot password link)?

This is where the question of security vs. usability really hits home for me. Fortunately, there are a number of different approaches you can take to solving this conundrum.

Sign up for a password management tool

Your best bet with password security is to sign up for a tool likeLastPassor1Password. These tools will store your passwords for you (and even provide random new passwords when needed). All you need to do is remember a single master password that grants you access to the stored data. Enter your master password once, and the password management tool does the rest.

Some of these password management tools integrate nicely within your browser or even on a mobile device.The encrypted data is stored safely (the toolsare as safe as you can getonline) and passwords are retrieved easily. In almost every instance, a password manager is the best way to go, and you might only notice inconveniences when youre logging in from a foreign device or a spot where you cant access the service (truly rare instances).

Keep original passwords for your most important tools, apps, and websites

Another strategy Ive come across is to max out your memory by storing as many possible passwords in your head. Use original ones for important sites like email, Facebook, Twitter, and banks. Use a common (but hard to crack) password for all the less important spots.

The risk here, of course, is that if one of your less important spots gets compromised, theyll all be at risk. Your all-important email, social, and money accounts will be safe, which is great.Your hacked Disqus account could be posting about how much you love acai fruit, which isnt so great.

Hybrid: Password management plus memorization

What if you mixed the two methods? Memorize passwords for your most important and most frequently used tools and use LastPass or 1Password for the rest.

You could even split it in such a way that you memorize passwords you use most often in places where LastPass and 1Password are least accessiblemobile apps you log in to all the time, for instance.

Other advice on solid, secure password management

If a site offerstwo-factor authentication, use it.With two-factor authentication, you receive a text message when you try logging in from a new computer.

If you have to share a password, use a site likeOneTimeSecret.The site creates a link to a page with your password info (or whatever info you choose, really), and once the page is viewed once, it is gone forever.

Dont save passwords or use remember me on public computers.

Keep written passwords stored securely.Consider keeping them in a safe or a safe-deposit box so that theyll only be accessed by those who need to know.

Dont change your passwords, unless you suspect theyve been compromised.Changing your password regularly does not have an effect on the likelihood of it being cracked.

Create Unbreakable Passwords: A Guide to Strong Passwords

How to Make A Strong Password

Creating unbreakable passwords is essential for keeping your data and accounts secure. A strong password is the first line of defense against cybercriminals and hackers. It is important to create passwords that are difficult to guess and remember. In this guide, we will discuss what makes a strong password, why it is important to have unbreakable passwords, and tips for creating secure passwords.

What is a Strong Password?

A strong password is a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols that is difficult to guess. It should be at least 8 characters long and should not contain any personal information such as your name, address, or phone number. A strong password should also not contain any words that can be found in a dictionary.

Why is it Important to Have Unbreakable Passwords?

Having unbreakable passwords is important for protecting your data and accounts. Weak passwords can easily be guessed or cracked by cybercriminals and hackers. Unbreakable passwords are more difficult to guess and can help protect your data from unauthorized access.

Tips for Creating Unbreakable Passwords

When creating a password, it is important to use a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. It should also be at least 8 characters long. It is also important to avoid using common words or phrases that can be found in a dictionary.

Avoid Commonly Used Passwords

It is important to avoid using commonly used passwords such as password or 123456. These passwords are easily guessed and can be cracked by hackers. It is also important to avoid using personal information such as your name, address, or phone number.

Use a Combination of Letters, Numbers and Symbols

When creating a password, it is important to use a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. This makes it more difficult for hackers to guess or crack your password. It is also important to use a combination of upper and lower case letters.

Change Your Passwords Regularly

It is important to change your passwords regularly. This helps to ensure that your passwords remain secure and that they are not compromised. It is also important to use different passwords for different accounts.

Use a Password Manager

Using a password manager can help to make sure that your passwords remain secure. A password manager can store your passwords securely and can help you to create strong passwords.

Dont Share Your Passwords

It is important to never share your passwords with anyone. Sharing your passwords can put your data and accounts at risk. It is also important to never write down your passwords or store them in an unsecure location.

Create Unbreakable Passwords for Different Accounts

It is important to create unbreakable passwords for different accounts. This helps to ensure that your data and accounts remain secure. It is also important to use different passwords for different accounts.

Keep Your Passwords Safe

It is important to keep your passwords safe. This means avoiding writing them down or storing them in an unsecure location. It is also important to use a password manager to store your passwords securely.

===Summing up Create Unbreakable Passwords: A Guide to Strong Passwords===Creating unbreakable passwords is essential for keeping your data and accounts secure. A strong password should be a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols that is difficult to guess. It is important to avoid using common words or phrases, personal information, and to change your passwords regularly. It is also important to use a password manager and to never share your passwords with anyone. By following these tips, you can create unbreakable passwords and keep your data and accounts secure.